The Media Line: Lebanon Expels Iranian Ambassador, Citing IRGC’s Role Directing Hezbollah During War  

Lebanon Expels Iranian Ambassador, Citing IRGC’s Role Directing Hezbollah During War  

By The Media Line Staff  

Lebanon’s foreign ministry said Tuesday it had revoked its approval for Iran’s ambassador and ordered him to leave the country by Sunday, citing what it described as breaches of diplomatic norms and Tehran’s involvement in directing Hezbollah’s military operations, according to Alsharq al-Awsat  

In a statement, the ministry said it summoned Iran’s charge d’affaires in Beirut to convey “the Lebanese state’s decision to withdraw approval of the accreditation of the appointed Iranian ambassador, Mohammad Reza Raouf Sheibani, and declare him persona non grata, demanding that he leave Lebanese territory no later than next Sunday.”  

The decision follows accusations by Lebanese authorities that Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has been commanding Hezbollah’s activities in its war against Israel, which officials said contravenes established diplomatic practices between the two states.  

The ministry also said Lebanon’s ambassador to Iran had been called back for consultations “in light of what the Lebanese state described as Tehran’s violation of diplomatic norms and established practices between the two countries.”  

Lebanese officials have increasingly placed responsibility on Hezbollah for escalating the conflict, saying the group’s rocket fire toward Israel on March 2 drew the country deeper into the war. The attack followed the killing of Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, at the outset of the fighting.  

Authorities have also taken steps affecting Iranian nationals, having already instructed Iranians to leave Lebanon.  

Israel has said that some of its strikes in Lebanon were aimed at IRGC personnel operating in the country alongside Hezbollah.